So. There you are, stuck in the backwater of a flaming red state, feeling like the only kid wearing sneakers to the prom. Lonely, ain't it?
You're doing the best you can, voting your values, trying to talk to other people who might share them, dreaming of the day when you're not the only one at church, work, or in your own family.
For moral support, you have a few close friends who share your views, even though they rarely speak about them in public. You've got quite a few places to go online and read about what's going on with the Party about this issue or that.
And you've got Daily Kos.
Or do you?
The purpose of Daily Kos, as stated by its founder, is to elect more and better Democrats. Going by that, you'd think we'd all be allies in our search for solidarity and finding great candidates to support and elect.
Hold up, there, sparky! It's not always that easy.
Over and over again, I see comments about some of the red states. And the things I see written, while true in many ways, are so far off base in others.
I'm not going to link to these comments, because I don't want to give them any more airing than they've already had. They don't deserve it. If you've seen them, you already know. If you've written them, you certainly know. If you haven't seen them, I'm afraid you're just not paying attention.
Think how it must feel to be in....say, Texas. It's a really, really red state. Except for those bright blue sparkly places, like Austin. Goddess Bless Austin!! There are all sorts of liberal, progressive things going on in Austin, right? Sure. But Austin....ain't Texas. What about Lubbock? And Plano? And Crawford? And Brownsville, and all the other big and little burgs across the state? What about all those people, some of whom are Kossacks...some of whom might one day be Kossacks...who read the comments about what a worthless place Texas is, and why we shouldn't care what that buncha backwards dipsticks think?? And doesn't it serve them right, because after all....they live in Texas.
Why don't you ask bastrop how he feels , trying to raise two young sons in Texas? Why don't you ask Chrislove what it's like to be a young gay man in Houston? I imagine they can just feel the love, when they and so many others are working their tails off to give Texas a chance to turn blue again. But they're in Texas, so who cares, right?
Way to show support to our friends and allies.
Think about how it must feel to be in Kentucky. Ground Zero for Mitch McConnell, and his right wing, tea party-crazed base. Can you imagine trying to get along there, with the deck stacked so damn high against you, and trying to reach out for support and a way to make a difference? Now imagine what some of your fellow Kossacks have to say about Kentucky. Never mind Mitch, that fat bastard is on his own. But his constituents....they are some of us.
How do you think it feels to be in Kansas? Sam (crazy-as-bat guano) Brownback's Kansas. Like they don't take enough heat about the level of crazy teabagging wingnuttery. Tell you what....ask tmservo433 about his work in Kansas and what he hopes to achieve for his child and all the children of Kansas.
We have Kossacks in all those red states....The Carolinas....Alabama...Mississsippi....Arizona. Ask arizonablue what it's like to live in blood red Arizona.
Think it's just the South? Think again. How do you think it feels to be in Wisconsin, once the bastion of unions and sanity and liberal thought?
The politics in those states have become hideously reactionary. Laws are being passed to limit the voting rights of the citizenry, to bust unions, to limit the rights of women over their own reproduction...the list goes on and on and on.
The thing is....in every one of those states, and so many others, there are people who either already are our allies, or who would love to be.
We owe them our full-throated support!! Let me say that again: WE OWE THEM.
They're fighting the battles on the ground, many of them against odds the rest of us cannot even imagine. They're risking friendships, familial relationships, marriages, and at times, their livelihoods. In some cases, these people have risked their physical well-being to get out the vote, put up signs for Democratic candidates, and do the grunt work that those of us in Liberal bastions like Massachusetts never have to do.
Remember the other rule here? About how we treat each other while we're trying to elect more and better Democrats? Here it is:
We are supposed to be supporting each other in our fight against the rising tide of red reactionary hatred and intolerance. We cannot do that if we're alienating the very people who are supposed to be our friends and allies.
Remember what Wee Mama says, "Is it True? Is It Kind? Is it Necessary?" If not...just let it go. Find ways to support our friends and allies who are living in the reddest states. Don't know how? Ask them. And please be polite when you do. I'm sure they'll be glad to answer you.
Come spend time in some of the community diaries where we talk about how to help each other...like Connect! Unite! Act! You'll find out how and where to meet up and do some of the amazing, rewarding work that so needs doing. And you'll find help and support along the way.
That's all I got, sparky. Dial back on the "it serves them right for living in..." because there but for the grace of the Goddess, go you and I! Remember...we are all in this together!
Thanks for reading.